Domestic appliance



Ap 1 D. H REEVES 2,374,457

DOMESTIC'APPLIANCE Filed Oct. 14, 1943 Q2 Sheets-Shz eet 1 M %M INVENTIOR.

BY W W April 24, 1945- D. H. REEVES 2,374,457

DOMESTIC APPLIANCE Filed Oct. 14, 1943 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 l n 4 1e 62 LO Q 54 5a 62 ll 62 5g, 56

Patented Apr. 24, 1945 DOMESTIC APPLIANCE Donald H. Reeves, Dayton, Ohio, assignor to General Motors Corporation, Dayton, Ohio, a corporation of Delaware Application October 14, 1943, Serial No. 506,152

1 Claim.

This invention relates to a domestic appliance and more particularly to an improved cord reel arrangement for use in vacuum cleaners and the like.

Cord reels have at times been used in connection with various types of domestic appliances but have always been objectionable from the standpoint of first cost, size and the need for frequent repairs with the result that they have not been used extensively. In the average domestic appliance anything requiring an increase in size of the appliance or adding an extra projection is an objectionable feature. It is an object of this invention to provide a low cost compact cord reel which does not require frequent repairs.

Thus one object of this invention is to simplify the cord reel by eliminating the need for brushes which have always been a source of trouble.

Another object of this invention is to mount a cord reel on the bottom side of a vacuum cleaner handle in a bag type vacuum cleaner and to provide the bag with a pocket or reentrant portion within which the cord reel projects so as to be concealed by the bag.

It is a further object of this invention to so arrange the cord reel mechanism in the outlet air stream as to absorb some of the noises.

A still further object of this invention is to utilize plastic materials in the construction of a cord reel.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, wherein a preferred form of the present invention is clearly shown.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is an elevational view with parts broken away showing a vacuum cleaner and cord reel arrangement;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary sectional view showing the arrangement of the cord reel with respect to the vacuum cleaner handle and the dust bag;

Fig. 3- is an elevational view of the cord reel casing; and

4 is a sectional viewtaken on line 4-4 of F Referring now to Fig. 1 wherein I have shown a preferred embodiment of my invention reference numeral I0 designates generally a floor type of vacuum cleaner which includes the usual mo tor driven fan and floor nozzle mechanism which may be of any conventional construction. Reference numeral l2 designates the handle of the vacuum cleaner which is pivotally mounted to the cleaner at H. The reference numeral I4 desighates the dust bag which is suspended from the handle as shown. Intermediate the ends of the handle 12 is mounted the cord reel designated generally by the reference numeral IS. The cord reel I6 is of light weight compact construction and includes a casing l! which is mounted directly on the bottom side of the handle by means of suitable fastening means such as screws l8 (Fig. 2) which pass through mounting lugs I9 provided on the casing H.

The handle 12 is preferably of a semicircular hollow construction so as to provide a conduit for the cord. The one end 20 of the cord is connected to the vacuum cleaner motor and includes a switch 22 forturning on and off the current to the motor. While I have shown the switch 22 mounted in the lower portion of the handle it is obvious that by providing the necessary wires the switch 22 may be arranged anywhere along the length of the handle or may take the form of a foot-operated switch mounted on the main motor housing. The upper end of the cord designated by the reference numeral 24 passesout through a hole 26 in the end of the handle l2. A cord control brake 28 is provided in the upper end of the handle for holding the cord from winding up on the reel. This brake 28 includes a button 30 which is arranged at a convenient place to be operated by the hand while gripping the vacuum cleaner handle. A spring 32 [biases the brake element into braking engagement with the cord 24.

Inasmuch as it is necessary to remove the bag from time to time the bag is provided with a reentrant portion 40 which encloses the reel l6 and which snaps onto the reel l6. As best shown in Fig. 1 the reentrant portion 40 which is preferably made of some rigid material is provided with a pair of projections 42 which snap into recess 44 provided in the side walls of the reel casing ll. By virtue of this arrangement the vacuum cleaner bag is neatly held in place next to the vacuum cleaner handle so as to conceal the cord reel and the exposed surface of the bag has not been reduced materially. The reentrant portion 40 pref erably includes a protective covering of sponge rubber material it. While I refer to the use of sponge rubber material any other sound deadening material capable of withstanding the abrasive action of the incoming dust and so forth may be used for covering the outer surface of the reentrant member 40. By virtue of the location of the reel withinthe bag the reel mechanism serves to" absorb some of the noise produced by the vacuum cleaner.

about which the cord is wrapped. The element 54 serves to space the side members 52. The elements 52 and 54 are held together by means of a plurality of screws 56 arranged as shown in Fig. 4. A pair of beryllium copper spiral springs 58 are provided as shown. The outer ends of the springs 58 are secured to the member 54 by means of the metallic inserts 60 which are tapped out to receive the terminal screws 62, which are used in connecting the two leads of the cord to the spring elements which serve as conductors for the electrical current. The inner ends of the springs 58 pass through a slot 64 in the shaft 48 and have secured thereto the ends of the wires forming cord 20 which leads to the vacuum cleaner motor. A spacer disc 66 is fioatingly mounted on the shaft 48 and serves to insulate the one spiral spring from the other. By virtue of this construction the need for brushes such as commonly used in cord reels has been eliminated and the spiral springs themselves serve as the conductors for the electrical current. By virtue of the use of plastics in constructing the cord reel the need for special insulation has been eliminated and the weight of the cord reel mechanism has been reduced. A thermosetting plastic material such as Bakelite is preferably used for the reel and the shaft.

conductors designated by the reference numeral 24 which lead from the stationary shaft 48 to the motor. This plate is provided with a tongue 12 which interlocks with the cleat 14 which is welded or otherwise secured to the wall of the casing H. The other end of the guard 10 is fastened in place by means of one or more screws 16.

By making the cord reel small, compact and light-weight, it can be mounted on the handle without interfering with the operation of the cleaner and Without materially increasing the weight which must be lifted in raising the handle.

It will be noted that the addition of the cord reel arrangement disclosed herein does not increase the size of the vacuum cleaner, and does not appreciably reduce the efiective surface area of the cloth dust bag even though the reel is disposed within the bag. If anything, the addition of the reel reduces the amount of space required by the cleaner and the cord since the unused cord occupies space within the bag. Furthermore, the weight of the cord reel does not materially exceed the weight of the hooks which would otherwise be used for supporting the cord while not in use.

While the form of embodiment of the invention as herein disclosed constitutes a preferred form,

I it is to be understood that other forms'might be As shown in Fig. 3 a guard plate 10 is fastened r to the one side of the casing I l for protecting the adopted, as may come within the scope of the claim which follows. 1

What is claimed is as follows:

In combination with a vacuum cleaner having a handle and a dust receptacle arranged vertically beneath said handle, an electric cord for supplying electricity to said cleaner, a cord reel at tached to said handle and projecting into said receptacle so as to be completely enclosed and concealed thereby, said handle having a hollow portion through which said cord extends.

DONALD H. REEVES. 

